" When the slain Prime Minister President Rafik Hariri was assassinated, the Syrian regime was in Lebanon and Lebanon was under the Syrian hegemony. The entire security was under their hands and that is why the international investigation committee pointed its accusation against the regime. I think that the tribunal should be able to try any suspect or criminal."

11. Tilt down exterior of Al-Amin mosque in central Beirut

12. Sign indicating "1475" days since Hariri's assassination

13. Various of Hariri's grave

14. Wide of Lebanese justice minister, Ibrahim Najjar, in his office

15. Cutaway close-up of Lebanese flag

16. SOUNDBITE (English): Ibrahim Najjar, Lebanese Justice Minister:

" The tribunal will be really independent and I think that, at least as far as Lebanese politicians are concerned, we have no intention whatsoever to interfere with the tribunal and its independence. This is really the way we see the tribunal functioning - with independence and capacity and only in order to find out the truth and to give their verdict."

17. Cutaway camera lens

18. SOUNDBITE (English): Ibrahim Najjar, Lebanese Justice Minister:

" Lebanon has really shocked with too many assassinations. I would say since more than 30 even 40 years. And it is about time now to terminate all that processes. We have to know who did what and this will be very benefit for us."

FILE: Beirut - 14 March 2005

19. Pan across protest crowd, protesters holding Lebanese flags

20. Mid of posters featuring Lebanese security chiefs being held up

Beirut - 28 February 2009

21. Set up of Samar Al-Hajj, wife of detained Brigadier General Ali Hajj

" We have been detained illegally for three and a half years. There is no existence for any law that can justify the detention of freedom. The detention is justified by a non-existent authority, in an illegal prison which does not exist on the prisons' map in Lebanon and does not relate to the chief of police as other prisons. If we want to speak legally we should not go to The Hague, otherwise they can take them (the four pro-Syria generals) in an arbitrary way, exceeding all the protocols and keep them there until the end of the parliamentarian elections."

Investigators have pored over evidence for four years - a human tooth found at the bombing site, a suicide truck that was stolen in Japan and made its way to Lebanon, reams of phone records and hundreds of interviews.

Now the focus in one of the Mideast's most dramatic political assassinations is shifting to prosecution, with the convening on Sunday of an international tribunal on the slaying of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Despite the start of proceedings in the Netherlands, it is still not known who will be accused in the suicide truck bombing that killed Hariri and 22 other people on a seaside street in Beirut on February 14, 2005.

Also unknown is the most politically explosive question - whether the proceedings will implicate Syria's government, which many Lebanese believe was behind the murder of a man who led opposition to the long Syrian military occupation of Lebanon.

Syria has denied any involvement.

The tribunal was welcomed on Saturday by Lebanese lawmaker Aatef Majdalani, of the Future Movement bloc, who said it would be the saving of Lebanon.

Majdalani said that Syria would be in the spotlight as Lebanon was under the Syrian regime at the time of the assassination.

The United Nations Security Council had to impose the mixed Lebanese-international Special Tribunal after Lebanon's parliament was too divided to approve it.

But Lebanese Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar insisted that the tribunal would be truly independent.

Most likely the first defendants before the court will be four pro-Syria generals who led Lebanon's police, intelligence service and an elite army unit at the time of the assassination.

They are the only people in custody, though they have not been formally charged.

The wife of one of the four officers detained, Brigadier General Ali Hajj, on Saturday called their detention "illegal".

Some in Lebanon doubt the court will ever bring out the full truth, believing it might avoid digging deep to ensure Syria does not react by stirring up trouble in Lebanon and other parts of the region.

Trials could also further polarise Lebanon's politics, feeding the power struggle between pro- and anti-Syria factions.

Administrators have said the tribunal will take up to five years to finish its work, and the top UN prosecutor, Daniel Bellemare of Canada, said in a statement on Saturday that it will be thorough.

As prime minister, Hariri, a billionaire businessman, was credited with rebuilding downtown Beirut after the 1975-90 civil war, and with trying to limit Syria's influence.

In a country known for political assassinations, his killing stands out for its far-reaching impact and set off huge anti-Syrian street protests in Lebanon and intense international pressure which forced Damascus to withdraw all its troops from Lebanon a few months later, ending nearly three decades of military domination.

But his death also threw Lebanon into turmoil.

Anti-Syria factions supported by the West won control of the government but were unable to exert any authority while locked in a struggle with Syria's allies, led by the Hezbollah movement.

The first UN investigator into the killing, Detlev Mehlis of Germany, said the assassination plot's complexity suggested a role by the Syrian intelligence services and its pro-Syria Lebanese counterpart.

But the two chief investigators who followed Mehlis have worked quietly and have not named any individuals or countries as suspects.

Last April (2008), Bellemare said investigators had evidence Hariri's killing was done by a "criminal network" also linked to a series of bombings and shootings that have killed seven anti-Syria figures and caused other deaths since Hariri's assassination.

The UN team worked under tight security for fear of attacks or intimidation, living in fortified compounds in Beirut and travelling in heavily protected motorcades.

The team also kept tight control of information about the investigation.

One piece of evidence is the tooth of the suicide bomber.

Forensic examinations determined the truck's driver was a man in his 20s who was not from Lebanon, according to Bellemare's predecessor as top investigator, Serge Brammertz of Belgium.

Investigators interviewed hundreds of people, including the presidents of Lebanon and Syria.

"You know, there's a consensus in Lebanon that Israel has to withdraw from all Lebanese territory. Anyway for me, I believe in peace and I believe that we have to do everything to achieve peace in the region."

25. Hariri talking mobile phone

STORYLINE:

An international tribunal to prosecute suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was starting work on Sunday at its headquarters in a village outside The Hague.

Despite the start of proceedings, it is still not known who will be accused in the suicide truck bombing that killed Hariri and 22 other people on a seaside street in Beirut on 14 February 2005.

Lebanese army forces in armoured personnel carriers were deployed on the streets of Beirut on Sunday to maintain calm.

Hundreds of Hariri supporters gathered peacefully around his grave in downtown Beirut, many expressing their support for the tribunal.

Mohammad El-Sheikh a resident in Beirut said whoever was responsible for the killing must be punished and he hoped the tribunal would achieve that.

While Leila Fleifel said Lebanon would not be a suitable place for living if the tribunal was not effective.

Four pro-Syrian generals are being held in Lebanese custody although none of them have been formally charged with Hariri's murder.

The generals led Lebanon's police, intelligence service and an elite army unit at the time of the assassination.

Court prosecutor Daniel Bellemare of Canada said he expects to request within weeks for Lebanon to transfer to the court the four generals.

As prime minister, Hariri, a billionaire businessman, was credited with rebuilding downtown Beirut after the 1975-90 civil war, and with trying to limit Syria's influence.

Many in Lebanon believe Syria was behind the assassination.

Syria has denied any involvement.

After the assassination, mass street protests in Lebanon and international pressure forced Syria to withdraw its troops from its neighbour after a 29-year presence.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon to investigate Hariri's killing was set up by the UN Security Council in 2007 and comprises both foreign and Lebanese judges.

It is based in the Netherlands to ensure the safety of staff and an impartial trial.

The judges have not yet been sworn in and the names of Lebanese judges have been withheld out of fears for their safety.

Some in Lebanon doubt the tribunal will ever bring out the full truth, believing it might avoid digging deep to ensure Syria does not react by stirring up trouble in Lebanon and other parts of the region.

"It is the beginning of truth, the beginning of justice and I think that it is a page that is being opened in the history of Lebanon, the page of Justice, the end of impunity and it is a lesson for many regimes around us in the Middle East."

15. Mid of May Chidiac, a Lebanese journalist and survivor of a targeted car bomb attack, laying flowers at grave

"We have suffered too much from killing and killing attempts and the explosions that were put here and there for many decades so now we hope this chapter will be over and will be closed."

18. People leaving the Hariri memorial ceremony

FILE: 26 October 2000

19. Convoy of Hariri arriving at presidential palace after being elected Prime Minister

20. Hariri getting out of car and walking into presidential palace

21. Various of meeting between Hariri and then Lebanese President Emile Lahoud

22. Hariri talking mobile phone

STORYLINE:

An international tribunal to prosecute suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was starting work on Sunday at its headquarters in a village outside The Hague.

Despite the start of proceedings, it is still not known who will be accused in the suicide truck bombing that killed Hariri and 22 other people on a seaside street in Beirut on 14 February 2005.

Lebanese army forces in armoured personnel carriers were deployed on the streets of Beirut on Sunday to maintain calm.

Hundreds of Hariri supporters gathered peacefully around his grave in downtown Beirut, to mark the beginning of the International Tribunal with many expressing their support.

Marwan Hamadeh, a Lebanese legislator who was targeted by a car bomb in Beirut in 2004, said the tribunal turned a page in Lebanon's history.

Hamadeh said the tribunal "is the beginning of truth, the beginning of justice" and he hoped it would be a "lesson for many regimes around us in the Middle East".

Also paying her respects at the graveside on Sunday was May Chidiac, a Lebanese journalist who also survived a car bomb attack.

Chidiac said she hoped the tribunal would spell the end of the suffering of the Lebanese people.

Four pro-Syrian generals are being held in Lebanese custody although none of them have been formally charged with Hariri's murder.

The generals led Lebanon's police, intelligence service and an elite army unit at the time of the assassination.

Court prosecutor Daniel Bellemare of Canada said he expects to request within weeks for Lebanon to transfer to the court the four generals.

As prime minister, Hariri, a billionaire businessman, was credited with rebuilding downtown Beirut after the 1975-90 civil war, and with trying to limit Syria's influence.

Many in Lebanon believe Syria was behind the assassination.

Syria has denied any involvement.

After the assassination, mass street protests in Lebanon and international pressure forced Syria to withdraw its troops from its neighbour after a 29-year presence.

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon to investigate Hariri's killing was set up by the UN Security Council in 2007 and comprises both foreign and Lebanese judges.

It is based in the Netherlands to ensure the safety of staff and an impartial trial.

The judges have not yet been sworn in and the names of Lebanese judges have been withheld out of fears for their safety.

Some in Lebanon doubt the tribunal will ever bring out the full truth, believing it might avoid digging deep to ensure Syria does not react by stirring up trouble in Lebanon and other parts of the region.

8. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Saad Hariri, Son of the slain Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and the head of Parliamentarian majority:

"I am announcing, clearly and directly, that I welcome any decision issued by the International Tribunal. Whether related to the fate if these four generals or on any related issue concerning the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri or any of the other assassinations that targeted the Lebanese leadership."

9. Various of General Jamil al-Sayyed arriving at his residence

10. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Jamil al-Sayyed, Released General:

"Saad Hariri needs to find out who killed his father and in order to find out, he must hold people accountable. Before all else, he should hold his media sources accountable and the the politicians who lied on him. Also (prosecutor) Said Mirzah and the judges who conducted these interrogations as well as the officers who fabricated information: Zuhair Al-Sidiq, Husam Husam (alleged witnesses) and others."

11. Mid of photographers

STORYLINE

Lebanon released four generals held for nearly four years in the 2005 truck-bomb assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri after a United Nations-backed tribunal ordered them freed on Wednesday.

One of the officers was cheered by a crowd of hundreds outside his house and another was hoisted onto the shoulders of family and friends and showered by rose petals as supporters danced and blew whistles.

Their release from a Beirut prison left the international tribunal in the Netherlands with no suspects in custody after a four-year UN investigation into an assassination that triggered enormous political turmoil in Lebanon.

The tribunal's decision - after prosecutors said there was not enough evidence to justify their continued detention - could also have an immediate political impact as Lebanon is heading into a crucial parliamentary election on June 7.

The generals had been held since August 2005 for suspected involvement in the suicide bombing that killed Hariri and 22 others in Beirut in February of that year.

Former General Security chief Major General Jamil al-Sayyed, the first of the generals to appear in public after their release, spoke to hundreds of cheering supporters outside his house.

He lashed out at authorities for what he called their "political detention," but said he does not seek revenge.

Al-Sayyed was released along with General Ali al-Hajj, the ex-Internal Security Forces director general; Brigadier General Raymond Azar, the former military intelligence chief; and the former Presidential Guards commander, Brigadier General Mustafa Hamdan.

Tribunal judge Daniel Fransen demanded that Lebanese authorities protect the generals after he ordered their unconditional release and said they should no longer be considered suspects.

Fransen said a key witness had retracted a statement that initially incriminated the generals, undermining the case against them.

Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare said in court he would not appeal. He said in a written submission this week that the evidence available to him currently "is not sufficiently credible" to keep detaining the four generals.

So far, Bellemare has not indicted anyone and has not identified any other suspects in the suicide bombing.

Hariri's son, Saad - who is head of Parliamentarian majority - said in a televised address that he accepted the tribunal's decision.

His father's assassination sparked mass protests that forced Syria's army out of the country after about three decades of political and military domination by Lebanon's neighbour.

As prime minister, Hariri, a billionaire businessman, was credited with rebuilding downtown Beirut after the 1975-90 civil war, and with trying to limit Syria's influence in the last months before his assassination.